2008 NOVEMBER

Stuart Jardine (GBR)

Nomination

75 years young, in August this former Olympic sailor and tireless supporter of sailing at all levels won the fiercely contested Cowes Week XOD title for a record 7th time. Jardine sealed his 2008 series with a blazing 3rd in a windy and carnage-strewn final race from a fleet of 81 entries, including champions past and present (among them recent XOD recruit and Laser Radial World Champion Ben Paton)

Why they won

Like Jim Saltonstall (right) many of Britain’s best sailors owe a great deal to this two-time Olympian, who has put far more into the sport than he could ever take out. The postbag was bursting from around the world; one gentleman being ‘very proud to have raced – and usually been beaten by – Stuart for over 52 years!’ ‘Legend’, ‘mentor’, ‘friend’, ‘selfless’, ‘inspiration’, ‘bloody good…’